Monday, July 10, 2017

T Stands for July 4

Happy T Day everyone. Today I want to share some snippets from last week's July 4th celebration . I can't believe the 4th of July has come and gone. A week ago. 
So my first share is the strawberry cake I made for the holiday. 
We say my dog Maddie's birthday is July 4, even though we don't know for sure when she was born. Its a good excuse for me to make a wild cake and have it not sit there tempting me because most everyone eats some.
I don't know why my pink strawberry batter turned light brown when I baked it, unless maybe I slightly overbaked it. It certainly wasn't burnt. But it was layered with strawberry puree and some strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream.
Here's the birthday girl looking awfully cute.
And here's her cute dog cousin Sophie.
These were taken while we had dinner. It was a pretty quiet holiday overall since a few people were missing. But there was still 12 of us. So what we traditionally do for our meal is everyone brings a side and then each family brings their own kabobs. There were fish kabobs, veggie kabobs and we brought steak tip kabobs.
You can see my kabobs along with a bit of pasta salad on my plate and also my diet coke.
Earlier in the day we enjoyed the sun down on the deck.
A margarita tasted good after my swim. 
Only one of these is mine. The other is my husbands.
Hardly anyone swam but I did. Not  the most flattering photo. :)  The dogs love to get up on the swim raft with me. 
Everyone else spent more time enjoying the dock and the sun.


No fireworks to wrap up the holiday this year. Since the hubby had to go to work the next morning we made it a fairly early evening and headed home. I did miss them though.
Stop by Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to see what the rest of the T gang has been up to. T Day is a great time to share some drink and food photos and stories, so you should join us.
And have great Tuesday!

22 comments:

Jeanie said...

Oh my gosh, Erika! That cake is just unbelievable. You are a cake goddess!

Looks like everything has been wonderful over the holiday. I love all the happy pix and any holiday by the water is a-ok with me!

Valerie-Jael said...

I love the look of that cake, you've got me craving a taste of it! Glad you had such a nice party, it all looks good, that food seems to be delicious. Your doggies look great with their scarves, very elegant indeed!Happy T Day, have fun! Hugs, Valerie

chrissie said...

Looks like you all enjoyed the day and nice that it was good weather.

The food and drink look amazing

Happy T Day

Love Chrissie xx

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

There were certainly plenty of drinks to go around at this T party. I really enjoyed seeing your cake and Maddie. I can't believe the dogs swam with those bandanas around their necks. They sure looked cute, though.

Thanks for sharing your cake, your kabobs, and the plethora of drinks with us for T this Tuesday. Hope your Tuesday is fabulous.

Gibby Frogett said...

Wow that's a yummy looking ( and huge?? ) cake Erika.
Looks like you all had a fun time - especially the lovely birthday girl!
Have a great day.. Gill xx

CJ Kennedy said...

Your cake is gorgeous! Maddie is one lucky dog. Sophie is cute, too. I like the girlies' patriotic neckerchiefs. Looks like the weather was perfect on the lake. You're brave to go in the water, it still must be pretty chilly. Looks like you had a great day. Stay dry today.

johanna said...

well, half a Piece of cake would be enough, because i´d take the meat before:)
happy t-day!

froebelsternchen said...

Fabulous pics of this special family day you had! Great cake and food!
Happy T-Day Erika!
My Dad is well ,back at home already and really the old one again - we are totally happy - I will visit him and his wife for three or four days now - off to them tomorrow.

oxo Susi

Linda Kunsman said...

what a fun gathering Erika. Lots of good food and what a beautiful and festive cake! Maddie and Sophie are sweethearts and I love that they joined you on the raft:) Looks like everyone relaxed and enjoyed the celebration. TFS and happy T day!

Let's Art Journal said...

Looks like you celebrated in style with that fabulous cake, it looks amazing and I bet it tasted so delicious too! Everyone looks so happy in the photos and I'd have been swimming in the water - such fun and a great way to cool down 😀. The kebabs, sides and margaritas are making me so hungry, as always seems to be the case when I visit you on T Day ... lol 😉. Thanks sharing your fun time and wishing you a Happy T Day! J 😊

Meggymay said...

A fantastic post and a delicious looking taste, I can almost taste it as i look at it. Th dogs looked happy as well as the family, it must have been a happy day for you all.
Happy T day
Yvonne xx

Divers and Sundry said...

What a fancy-looking cake! And the strawberry cake I've had in cafes has been the color of yours, so I thought it was supposed to look like that. The kebabs look delicious! It'd be hard to resist a swim with the setting you were in!

Happy T Tuesday

jinxxxygirl said...

Well what a nice party you had!! We haven't really celebrated the 4th since the kids are all growed up...My youngest is 30 so its been a long time.. Your cake looks divine! And the puppies happy! Yeah i would not be in the lake water either.... deathly afraid of snakes here... We live right by a big lake but you won't catch me in it... Happy happy T day! Hugs! deb

Sandy said...

This looks like a wonderful holiday to me and your cake looks so delicious. I wish you would post the recipe!!!!
sandy xx

Carol said...

That looks like a great way to spend the holiday ♥ Good food and family and friends is the way to go. Thanks for stopping by my blog. THe old dog acts younger and younger every day but only in spurts. How could I not take care of her when she is so sweet. Happy T Day!

Eileen The Artful Crafter said...

That's a fantastic 4th of July cake, Erika! You outdid yourself. I loved hearing how you organize your get-togethers. Those are great tips. Looks like everyone had a wonderful time.

Happy T-Day! Hugs, Eileen

nanskidrewski said...

looks like a fun day. I love your 4th celebration cake.

Denise Price said...

Wow, that is one gorgeous cake! It grabbed my attention right away.

I love how both of the dogs had bandanas for the 4th of July. I'm glad you had a good holiday, and I hope you are having a happy T Day as well.

Halle said...

What a beautiful cake. Family, friends, fun and food is always a good combo for the 4th!
Happy T Day!

Lisca said...

Wow! That is a cake and a half! It doesn't matter that the cake wasn't pink on the inside. Who cares as long as it tastes nice.
Thank you for sharing your 4th July celebration with us. Living in Europe, I have no idea what you guys get up to on that holiday.
Happy (belated) T-Day,
Lisca

Dortesjs said...

Such sweet doggies you have, love dogs, and cats and rabbit and...well all animals ;O)

pearshapedcrafting said...

Looks like a great way to celebrate! Belated happy T Day! Connection was dreadful at our caravan! Chrisx